Presence of a copious number of big and small players makes the global free space optics (FSO) market highly dynamic. The market is being primarily driven by the growing demand for high bandwidth and increasing application of free optics in military application. In addition, growing usage of free space optics in 3G and 4G networks and quick and easy installation of this technology is also positively impacting the market.

Posing a hindrance to the global free space optics market is the environmental interference or atmospheric attention affecting the signal quality. Serving to tackle the problem is the laser auto tracking devices, multi-beam, multi-path architecture, and hybrid dual mode RF technology to mitigate the effects of atmospheric attenuation. Therefore, the global market is expected to witness steady growth during the forecast period.

As per a report by Transparency Market Research, the global free space optics market will rise at a phenomenal CAGR of 32.5% from 2017 to 2025. Expanding at this pace, the market which was worth US$92.2 mn in 2016 will likely become worth US$1.07 bn by 2025.

Depending upon application, the key segments of the global free space optics market are storage area network, data transmission, defense, security, airborne applications, healthcare, disaster recover, last mile access, etc. Of them, the application of free space optics for data transmission accounted for maximum share in the market. This because the data transmitted through free space optics is more secure compared to RF or other wireless transmission technologies. Hence, it is preferred over the conventional wireless technologies. The data can be transmitted over an encrypted connection, which adds to the degree of security available in FSO data transmission.

The application free space optics in the defense sector comes in the second position. The deployment of FSO technology in this application area has been persistent, owing to its high bandwidth capacity, low bit error rates, less power consumption and high communications security which are of utmost importance in defense applications. In the years ahead, growing demand from other application areas such as healthcare and airborne applications among other is expected to bolster the market growth.

Focus on Research and Development Makes North America Market Dominant

From a geographical standpoint, North America and Europe are key regions that had a combined share of 60% in the global free space optics market. Thrust on research and development activities and early penetration of latest technology in these regions have served to fuel their markets. In fact, FSO technology has been in use by the U.S. military for several years primarily in the ship-to-ship and naval communications. In addition, continued network facilitation and upgrades is also positively influencing the market in the region. The market in North America is predicted to clock a CAGR of 32.1% in the forecast period to pull in a revenue of US$312.2 mn by 2025 from US$29.1 mn in 2016. The market in Europe, is expected to rise at a CAGR of 31.9% in the forecast period to become worth US$280.5 mn in 2025 from US$23.9 mn in 2016.

Vis-à-vis growth rate, Asia Pacific is projected to outpace all other regions by registering a CAGR of 33.4% from 2016 to 2025. The proliferation of telecommunication and IT in the rapidly expanding economies of India and China is at the forefront of driving growth in the global free space optics market.

Free space optics (FSO) communication, also known as optical wireless or free space photonics (FSP) is a line-of-sight technology that propagates light in free space such as vacuum, air, or outer space in order to wirelessly transmit data for computer networking and telecommunication. This technology requires light, which can be focused by either using light emitting diodes or lasers. Free space optics uses optical signals as the carrier frequencies to offer point-to-point transmission of communication information through the atmosphere. This technology offers several benefits over existing techniques such as radio, microwave, or optical systems. The advantages associated with FSO such as low initial investment, low power usage per transmitted bit, high bandwidth provisioning, flexible rollouts, high security, and quick establishment of communication link has led to increasing number of applications of free space optics in various industries.

Global Free Space Optics (FSO) Communication Market: Drivers

A surge in demand for high bandwidth and increasing application of free space optical technology in military environments is strongly driving the growth of the free space optics market. Bandwidth usage is experiencing unprecedented growth and the demand for bandwidth is not likely to slow down in the coming years. Free space optical communication is a viable solution for various military applications and the most promising military environments where FSO technology can be used include military bases, in between bases where bases are co-located within 2-4 km of one another, ship to shore communications, and ship to ship communications. In addition to these factors, the incorporation of free space optics in 3G and 4G networks is triggering the market growth. Furthermore, quicker time to market and reduced costs associated with free space optics technology is boosting the market growth. The conjoint effect of all these drivers is thus set to bolster the growth of the global free space optics (FSO) communication market during the forecast period.

Advancements in free space optics technology and healthy economic growth of emerging economies are offering potential growth opportunities to the free space optics market. Advancements in free space optics technology have led to growth in requirement of free space optical communication in several applications including telecommunications, military and defense.

Key players in the free space optics (FSO) communication market are coming up with rapid technological advancements to mitigate the effect of atmospheric attenuation on the FSO signals and this is expected to offer potential growth opportunities to the growth of the global free space optics communication market. Further, an unexpected exponential growth of the telecommunications industry and tremendous increase in the online time used up by existing customers is witnessed in the developing regions of Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa and South America. This is persistently fuelling the demand for bandwidth and consequently offering lucrative opportunities for the growth of the FSO communication market.

The competitive profiling of the major companies in the global free space optics communication market across five broad geographic regions has been included in the study. The competitive landscape is inclusive of the recent developments of the leading players in the field of free space optics and the various business strategies adopted by these companies. In the report, market attractive analysis of the chief application of free space optics has been provided in order to offer an insight into the global free space optics communication market. An extensive analysis of market dynamics which includes the drivers, restraints and opportunities of the global market is included under the scope of the study. Hence, the global free space optics communication market report offers an inclusive study of the market along with providing the forecast of the market for the period from 2017 to 2025.